Peruvian Woman Enlists Boyfriend to Murder Her American Husband to Avoid Deportation After He Discovers Their Affair

A woman from Peru conspired with her boyfriend to kill her husband after he learned about their affair, police shared.

Olga Vasquez was found guilty of murdering her husband, Adrian Zapata in Westminster, California, by a jury, and is currently serving her 25-year sentence, Oxygen reported.

Zapata and Vasquez moved to the U.S.A. in 2013 after marrying each other, Oxygen reported. Vasquez arrived in the country with her two sons. Eleven months into their stay in the country, Zapata was found dead on his bed.

The 58-year-old had been bludgeoned to death on May 22, 2014, Oxygen reported. He had suffered blunt force trauma to his head and had seven stab wounds.

Vasquez had an alibi during the estimated time of the murder, Oxygen reported. The wife told officials that she had been running errands after dropping off her kids, and on investigation, her claims checked out.

Zapata had confided to his friends about problems in his marriage, Oxygen reported.

"Adrian had confided that they weren’t being intimate — that he planned on potentially divorcing her," James Wilson, a Westminster, California police detective, said. "If you get a divorce, you’re going back to Peru. And you’re not going to be able to stay here in the United States."

Ruth Sevilla, Zapata's friend,  shared with authorities the alleged state of the victim's marriage, Oxygen reported.

"It was a month after he brought her to the U.S., he told me, 'We don’t sleep together no more.' And I said, 'What do you mean? This is not right,'" Sevilla said. Zapata had apparently looked into his wife's phone records and seen her conversations with another man, which indicated an affair, the outlet reported.

After reaching out to friends, Zapata allegedly found out that Vasquez had been cheating on him when both of them were in separate countries, as per Sevilla, Oxygen reported.

On analyzing the crime scene, the investigators found a box of condoms and lingerie in the victim's car trunk that did not belong to his wife, Oxygen reported. All of this evidence pointed towards Zapata having an affair. 

Police put Vasquez on surveillance, Oxygen reported. Soon they caught her meeting with a man along with her sons at a hotel. "It was obvious she was being romantic with this person," Wilson said. "They seemed very friendly toward each other."

The man was identified as Roberto Saavedra, Oxygen reported. Saavedra arrived in the US through a travel visa from Peru, on March 14, 2014. "Olga was having an affair and not only was she lying to us about it, she’s trying to make it look like Adrian was the one having an affair," Wilson said. "Basically, to get us to not look into her."

Vasquez had dated Saavedra for a few months in 2009, CBS News reported. They apparently rekindled their relationship in 2014. 

Police followed Saavedra and took his discarded bottle for DNA matching with samples found from lingerie at the crime scene, Oxygen reported. The samples matched with each other.

"The DNA was important because it would show that the nightie and condoms were in fact planted in the trunk," said prosecutor Janine Madera. "It doesn’t prove it definitively, but it’s evidence that seems to suggest that."

Phone conversations between Saavedra and Vasquez also implied that they had an intimate relationship, Oxygen reported. Saavedra's phone location at the time of the murder helped prosecutors build a case against him.

"His phone shows the night before the murder he comes to Westminster," Wilson said. "And he’s staying just outside [Vasquez’s] apartment complex. Until about 8 a.m. Then his phone goes off for a short time."

At 8.30 a.m. Saavedra allegedly talked with Vasquez on her supposed second phone, and according to the investigation findings, the victim was murdered between 8 and 8.30 a.m., Oxygen reported.

Saavedra fled to Canada during the investigation. In 2019, he was extradited to the U.S.A. to face his charges. In July 2023, he was found guilty and given a life sentence.

In March 2019, Vasquez was arrested, CBS News reported. On June 29, 2021, she was found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy by a jury. She was sentenced to 25 to life for these charges.

In November 2022, Vasquez appealed her conviction but it was rejected, Oxygen reported.